‘Live like a local’: Tourism’s new (and misguided) obsession

A tourist takes a picture with local women at the Dharavi slums in India, said to be Asia's second-largest. Source: Shutterstock

HOW many times have you seen travel platforms or tourism companies slot in and promote activities that allow a tourist to “live like a local”?

This includes experiences such as rubber tapping in a dense plantation in Malaysia, a walking street food tour in Hanoi’s Old Quarter, or planting rice in a sprawling paddy field in rural Thailand.

And there are many who would jump at the opportunity, without really wondering: “Do the locals in these countries really spend all their days tapping rubber and planting paddy?” or “Isn’t a walking street food tour something I could do on my own?”

“Live like a local” is a travel industry jargon that taps into the market of travellers who are obsessed with finding “off the beaten track” (or “off the beaten path”) things to do and places to eat.

These are tourists seeking nothing less than the most “authentic” experiences or, like true hipsters, would go out of their way to avoid tourist traps, large crowds and any site that, in their opinion, gets way too much media airtime.

These travellers would go the extra mile to “discover” lesser-known attractions in hopes of earning #travelbrag points.

A group of tourists and a guide explaining the production of palm sugar juice at a colourful local market in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Source: Shutterstock.

Sure, travelling without feeling like an outsider is a great concept. But is it really embracing living like a local?

What will keep tourists from bulldozing over the “hidden” places only a small percentage of the world has seen and bastardising the cultures they so desperately want to experience?

Tourists forget that although “life” as a local and access to communities can be easily purchased at the tap of a button or a few mouse clicks, they are inevitably contributing to inauthenticity and exploitation.